Powerlifter Wins Another Medal for Greece in Tokyo Paralympics

Powerlifter Dimitrios Bakochristos of Greece won the bronze medal in the men’s 54 kg event on Thursday at the Tokyo Paralympics.

David Degtyarev from Kazakhstan won gold and Axel Bourlon from France won silver.

Bakochristos also represented Greece at the 2016 Summer Paralympics held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and he won the bronze medal in the men’s 54 kg event.

He lifted 162 kg which was sufficient for the bronze medal; although Bruno Carra (representing Brazil) lifted the same amount as Bakochristos, he did not win the medal as his body weight was higher.

At the 2019 World Para Powerlifting Championships he won the bronze medal in the men’s 54 kg event.He also won the bronze medal in this event at the 2017 World Para Powerlifting Championships held in Mexico City.

On Wednesday two more athletes representing Greece won bronze medals. Panagiotis Triantafyllou and Demosthenes Michalentzakis won bronze for Greece in the wheelchair individual fencing category and swimming respectively.

The President of Greece, Katerina Sakellaropoulou, congratulated the two athletes via Twitter, saying: “Congratulations to Panagiotis Triantafyllou and Demosthenes Michalentzakis for the bronze medals in fencing and swimming at the Tokyo Paralympic Games! We are proud of our athletes who by their example give strength to all of us.”

Greece competes with 46 athletes in the Paralympics

The Paralympic Games 2020 started with Tuesday’s opening ceremony in Tokyo.

Around 4,400 athletes with disabilities, including 46 from Greece, are competing in 22 sports.

As Tokyo hosts the event, organizers urged participants to follow coronavirus rules with increased vigilance. “The infection situation today is different to how it was before the Olympics. It has deteriorated,” said Tokyo 2020 official Hidemasa Nakamura.

Team Greece will compete with 46 athletes in 11 sports, including track and field, swimming, weightlifting, fencing, cycling, judo, archery and table tennis.

At the Rio Games in 2016, Greece won 13 medals (5 gold, 4 silver, 4 bronze), taking 24th place on the medal table. It was the second best place in the history of the Greek Paralympics, after the games in Beijing where it finished in 20th place.